Page 59 of The Christmas Spirits on Tradd Street
Jack was eyeing the table, and I knew he was thinking his time would be better spent playing with the puzzle than Christmas shopping on King Street. “Jack,” I said with a warning in my voice, “you know they have a special service tonight to help men take care of their shopping. I’d hate for you to miss that.”
He looked up, surprised at being caught. “I just thought...”
“Come on,” I said. “Let’s call an Uber or something. It is way too cold to walk all the way to Calhoun.” I glanced around the room, aware of someone missing. “Where’s Anthony? Isn’t he supposed to be coming tonight?”
Jayne shook her head. “He’s sick. He said he hasn’t been feeling well since he left the cemetery. I told him he should come to his house in town just in case it’s something at Gallen Hall, but he said he was too sick to move. I asked if I could call his doctor, but he said he’d be fine by morning. I’ll check in then.”
I exchanged a glance with my mother but didn’t want to say anythingin front of Cooper about how Anthony should stay away from stairs and open windows while alone at the plantation house.
“And if it’s all right with you, Miss Smith, I’d love to stay here for a bit and work on the puzzle. Just for an hour or two.” Cooper looked at Jack. “I mean, if that’s all right with you, sir.”
“As long as you’re here, and Nola’s not, I’m fine with that arrangement.”
“Jack...” I started to say, but I was interrupted by the ring of the doorbell.
We watched as Jayne walked across the foyer to open the door. There was a slight pause and then: “Thomas,” she said, her voice an octave higher than it had been five seconds ago. “What are you doing here?”
Detective Riley stood in the doorway, his tall figure filling the space. He looked behind Jayne and met my gaze. “Sorry. I didn’t know you’d have company. I just wanted to stop by and see how you were doing.” He grinned. “And if your house is behaving.”
Cooper and my dad looked confused, but the rest of us, who’d witnessed the spirit cleansing in Jayne’s attic, understood.
“It’s doing fine,” Jayne said, pulling the door open wider. “And you have shoes; please walk them inside.”
Feeling the need to rescue my sister, I placed my hand on her shoulder and squeezed, a reminder to take a deep breath before trying again. “So great to see you, Thomas. We’re getting ready to leave for the Shop and Stroll, but come in for a minute to warm up. If that’s all right with Jayne?”
I glanced at my sister and she gave one decisive nod.
“I really don’t want to intrude. I can come back later...” Thomas began.
“Don’t be silly. We’re all old friends here.” I pulled him inside and closed the door behind him. There was an awkward silence, filled with Jayne’s deep breathing, as we all looked at one another.
My dad clasped his hands together. “What are we thinking? We have a trained detective in our midst and a whole mystery spread out on the dining room table.” He indicated the dining room. “Would you like to take a gander, Detective?”
I thought I saw a bright gleam in Thomas’s eye. “I’d love to,” he said, following my dad and stopping in front of the table. “Wow. It’s like a giant jigsaw puzzle. Are these bricks?”
“From the inside of the mausoleum at Gallen Hall,” Jayne said slowly, considering each word. “There was a horizontal design two bricks wide encircling the interior, but none of them matched.”
“And you figured out that the lines on the bricks might match up if you could separate them into individual puzzle pieces.” Thomas looked at Jayne as if she were Einstein himself standing in the dining room.
“Actually, it was my other daughter,” my dad said, beaming. “I sure hit the lottery with three brilliant women in my family.”
Other daughter?I smiled and nodded appreciation, unable to feel truly grateful at his compliment. I didn’t scrutinize my feelings, fairly confident that I was certain I knew the exact reason.
Thomas began unbuttoning his coat. “This actually looks like fun. Although it could be that these were just leftover bricks and don’t have any connection to each other at all.”
“Oh, we’ve definitely considered that possibility,” Jack said. “But we’re determined to remain hopeful.”
Thomas leaned over the table to get a better look. “I see someone’s found a corner piece already. Nice going.”
“That was me,” I said, a little too eagerly, because apparently I thought I was still in kindergarten and required approval and reassurance for every small task.
“Yes, it was,” Jack said, rubbing my back and making me feel even more like a child. I turned to express my annoyance and was immediately met with a gentle kiss on my lips.
“Has anyone considered staying in tonight and working on the puzzle?” Thomas looked around for collaborators, his eyes hopeful.
“Yes,” Jack said at the same time I said, “No.”
My mother stepped forward to intervene. “We have an extra ticket for the Shop and Stroll, Thomas. Why don’t you join us?”
